Cacaxtla

Cacaxtla (kaˈkaʃtɬaːn) is an archaeological site located near the southern border of the Mexican state of Tlaxcala. It contains a sprawling palace with vibrantly colored murals painted in Maya style. The nearby site of Xochitecatl was a more public ceremonial complex associated with Cacaxtla. Cacaxtla and Xochitecatl prospered 650-900 CE, probably controlling important trade routes through the region with an enclave population of no more than 10,000 people. Cacaxtla was the capital of region inhabited by the Olmeca-Xicalanca people. The origins of the Olmeca-Xicalanca are not known with certainty, but they are assumed to come from the Gulf coast region, and were perhaps Maya settlers who arrived in this part of central Mexico around 400 CE. The term "Olmeca-Xicalanca" was first mentioned by Tlaxcalan historian Diego Muñoz Camargo at the end of the 16th century. This historian described Cacaxtla as the principal settlement of the “Olmeca”, although what we today refer to as the Olmec culture ended ~400 BCE, that is, almost 800 years earlier. After the fall of the nearby city Cholula (ca. 650 - 750) — in which the Cacaxtlecas might have been involved — Cacaxtla became the hegemonic power in this part of the Tlaxcala–Puebla valley. Warriors from Cacaxtla appear to have taken over Cholula for a time, but they were ultimately expelled by the Toltecs. Its ascendancy came to an end around 900 CE and, by 1000, the city had been abandoned. The site was rediscovered in September 1975 by maintenance workers, but quickly came to the attention of archaeologists. Archaeologists Eduardo Merlo Juárez, Diana Lopez-Sotomayor and Daniel Molina-Feal dedicated over six years of their life excavating the site. The first work to be done in the area consisted on clearing the original tunnel opened by the maintenance workers, Archeologist Diana Lopez-Sotomayor, later appointed project manager, recalled her first view of the life-sized characters depicted in the murals as an overwhelming experience.